2005 Formula One season

2005 FIA Formula One World Championship season Previous: 2004 Next: 2006 Index: Races by country | Races by season

Fernando Alonso won the drivers' championship with Renault.

Kimi Räikkönen finished 2nd for McLaren, 21 points behind Alonso.

Michael Schumacher took 3rd with Ferrari.

"F1 2005" redirects here. For the video games based on the 2005 Formula One season, see F1 05 & F1 Grand Prix.

The 2005 Formula One season was the 56th FIA Formula One World Championship season, contested over a record 19 Grands Prix. It commenced on March 6, 2005, and ended October 16.

Fernando Alonso and the Renault F1 team won the World Drivers and Constructors Championships, ending five years of dominance by Michael Schumacher and Scuderia Ferrari. Alonso's success made him the youngest Champion in the history of the sport, a title he held until Lewis Hamilton's 2008 title success. Renault's success was their first as a Constructor.

The 2005 season was the last for several well known Formula One teams, with the Minardi, BAR and Jordan teams all being taken over by new owners.

Report

The most-noted aspect of the season was Ferrari's lack of pace caused mainly by a new rule prohibiting tyre changes during the course of a race. The Bridgestone tyres used by Ferrari could not find the right balance between performance and reliability, leaving the Michelin runners to battle for race victories.^[1] Further rule changes emphasised the new focus on reliability, with engines required to last two Grands Prix without being changed.

Renault appeared the fastest team in pre-season testing and it was no surprise they dominated the early fly-away rounds. Giancarlo Fisichella won the season opener in Australia before team-mate Alonso demonstrated his title credentials with a series of victories in Malaysia, Bahrain and San Marino. As the season progressed the McLarens of Kimi Räikkönen and Juan Pablo Montoya became increasingly competitive and by the latter stages of the season the McLaren was generally considered the faster package. However, constant technical failures meant neither the team nor Räikkönen were able to translate their speed into Championship success. Räikkönen fell foul of the new tyre change rules in spectacular fashion while leading the European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring, his suspension collapsing due to vibrations caused by a flat-spotted tyre just a lap from the chequered flag, causing a dramatic accident.

Alonso secured his Drivers Championship with a third-place finish in the Brazilian Grand Prix. Despite both he and Räikkönen having six victories to their name at this point in the season, Alonso's greater consistency meant he was able to claim the Championship with two rounds to spare. The Constructors Championship was secured by Renault at the final race, with Alonso's seventh race victory. This gave Renault their first Championship as a Constructor after only previously triumphing as an engine supplier, despite winning two fewer races than McLaren.

Ferrari finished third in the Constructors Championship with only one win, at the United States Grand Prix, in farcical scenes after the race was only contested by the six Bridgestone cars after Michelin declared their tyres unsafe to run on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's unique banked corner.^[2]

After a high-flying 2004 season the most conspicuous drop in performance after Ferrari was BAR-Honda, who were banned from two races after scrutineers in San Marino discovered a hidden fuel compartment that allowed their cars to run underweight. They were beaten in the Championship by Williams, whose engine partner BMW had announced they were leaving to join Sauber in June, and Toyota, who achieved 5 podium finishes and were only beaten to third in the championship because of Ferrari's 1-2 in Indianapolis.

All the teams scored world championship points over the course of the season, Minardi scoring rare points in their final season courtesy of being able to run in the US race.

Drivers and constructors

The following teams and drivers were competitors in the 2005 FIA Formula One World Championship.

Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	No	Driver	Rounds	No	Third driver	Test driver(s)
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro	Ferrari	F2004M F2005	Ferrari 053 3.0 V10 Ferrari 055 3.0 V10	B	1	Michael Schumacher	All		n/a	Luca Badoer Marc Gené
					2	Rubens Barrichello	All
Lucky Strike BAR Honda	BAR	007	Honda RA005E 3.0 V10	M	3	Jenson Button	All		n/a	Anthony Davidson Enrique Bernoldi Adam Carroll Tony Kanaan Alan van der Merwe
					4	Takuma Sato1	1, 3-19
						Anthony Davidson	2
Mild Seven Renault F1 Team	Renault	R25	Renault RS25 3.0 V10	M	5	Fernando Alonso	All		n/a	Franck Montagny Lucas di Grassi Robert Kubica Giorgio Mondini
					6	Giancarlo Fisichella	All
BMW WilliamsF1 Team	Williams	FW27	BMW P84/5 3.0 V10	M	7	Mark Webber	All		n/a	Antônio Pizzonia Nico Rosberg Andy Priaulx Sebastian Vettel
					8	Nick Heidfeld	1-14
						Antônio Pizzonia	15-19
West McLaren Mercedes Team McLaren Mercedes 10	McLaren	MP4-20	Mercedes FO110R 3.0 V10	M	9	Kimi Räikkönen	All	35	Pedro de la Rosa Alexander Wurz	Pedro de la Rosa Alexander Wurz Gary Paffett
					10	Juan Pablo Montoya2	1-2, 5-19
						Pedro de la Rosa	3
						Alexander Wurz	4
Sauber Petronas	Sauber	C24	Petronas 05A 3.0 V10	M	11	Jacques Villeneuve	All		none	none
					12	Felipe Massa	All
Red Bull Racing	Red Bull	RB1	Cosworth TJ2005 3.0 V10	M	14	David Coulthard	All	37	Vitantonio Liuzzi Christian Klien Scott Speed	Scott Speed Neel Jani
					15	Christian Klien3	1-3, 8-19
						Vitantonio Liuzzi	4-7
Panasonic Toyota Racing	Toyota	TF105 TF105B	Toyota RVX-05 3.0 V10	M	16	Jarno Trulli	All	38	Ricardo Zonta Olivier Panis	Olivier Panis Ryan Briscoe Franck Perera Borja García
					17	Ralf Schumacher	1-8, 10-19
						Ricardo Zonta	9
Jordan Grand Prix	Jordan	EJ15 EJ15B	Toyota RVX-05 3.0 V10	B	18	Tiago Monteiro	All	39	Robert Doornbos Franck Montagny Nicolas Kiesa Sakon Yamamoto	Nicky Pastorelli Mario Domínguez
					19	Narain Karthikeyan	All
Minardi Cosworth	Minardi	PS04B PS05	Cosworth CK2004 3.0 V10 Cosworth TJ2005 3.0 V10	B	20	Patrick Friesacher	1-11	40	Chanoch Nissany7 Enrico Toccacelo8	Chanoch Nissany Juan Cáceres Roldán Rodríguez
						Robert Doornbos5	12-19
					21	Christijan Albers	All

1. Anthony Davidson (BAR) raced in Malaysia for an ill Takuma Sato (fever, flu).
2. Pedro de la Rosa (McLaren) raced in Bahrain for an injured Juan Pablo Montoya (non-racing shoulder injury); Alexander Wurz was third driver in place of de la Rosa. For the 2005 San Marino Grand Prix, de la Rosa and Wurz swapped roles.
3. Vitantonio Liuzzi and Christian Klien were both contracted to Red Bull Racing to participate in at least three races, and agreed to share their race seat for the season. Klien drove in the first three races; Liuzzi replaced him for the San Marino, Spanish, Monaco, and European Grands Prix; Klien returned again for the Canadian GP, and completed the remainder of the races for the season.
4. Robert Doornbos was Jordan's third driver for 9 of the first 11 races of the season. Franck Montagny replaced him at the European Grand Prix, Jordan were banned from using a third car at the Canadian Grand Prix after using too many tyres at the previous race. Nicolas Kiesa replaced Doornbos for the German Grand Prix onwards.
5. Patrick Friesacher was replaced at Minardi by Robert Doornbos for the 2005 German Grand Prix and beyond due to sponsorship issues.
6. No Michelin-shod teams participated in the U.S. Grand Prix for safety reasons, leaving just six cars on the grid at the start of the race.
7. Chanoch Nissany became Minardi's third driver for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
8. Enrico Toccacelo replaced Chanoch Nissany as Minardi's third driver for the Turkish Grand Prix.
9. Antônio Pizzonia replaced Nick Heidfeld at Williams for the Italian Grand Prix after Heidfeld decided to withdraw after complaining of a severe headache. Earlier in the week, he crashed heavily during a test session at Monza. Pizzonia replaced Heidfeld again for the remaining three races of the season after Heidfeld had a motorcycle accident.
10. At the Hungarian Grand Prix, West McLaren Mercedes became Team McLaren Mercedes.
11. 2005 was the final year of the 3 litre V10 engine formula.

Driver changes

The most noticeable change to the 2005 season was its driver lineup — only 7 drivers raced for the same team with which they began the 2004 season, another 7 drivers switched to new teams.

Driver	2004 Team	2005 Team	Team Position
Giancarlo Fisichella	Sauber Petronas	Mild Seven Renault F1 Team	Full-Time Driver
Mark Webber	Jaguar Racing	BMW.WilliamsF1 Team	Full-Time driver
Nick Heidfeld	Jordan Ford	BMW.WilliamsF1 Team	Full-Time driver
Juan Pablo Montoya	BMW.WilliamsF1 Team	West McLaren Mercedes	Full-Time driver
Jacques Villeneuve	Mild Seven Renault F1 Team	Sauber Petronas	Full time Driver
David Coulthard	West McLaren Mercedes	Red Bull Racing	Full-Time driver
Christian Klien	Jaguar Racing	Red Bull Racing	Full-Time driver
Jarno Trulli*	Mild Seven Renault F1 Team	Panasonic Toyota Racing	Full-Time Driver
Ralf Schumacher	BMW.WilliamsF1 Team	Panasonic Toyota Racing	Full-Time Driver
Tiago Monteiro	none	Jordan Grand Prix	Full-Time driver
Narain Karthikeyan	none	Jordan Grand Prix	Full-Time driver
Patrick Friesacher	none	Minardi F1 Team	Full-Time driver
Christijan Albers	none	Minardi F1 Team	Full-Time driver
Cristiano da Matta	Panasonic Toyota Racing	none
Olivier Panis	Panasonic Toyota Racing	Panasonic Toyota Racing	Advisor/Test Driver
Giorgio Pantano	Jordan Ford	none
Gianmaria Bruni	Minardi Cosworth	none
Zsolt Baumgartner	Minardi Cosworth	none
Robert Doornbos	Jordan Ford	Minardi Cosworth	Test Driver
Robert Kubica	none	Mild Seven Renault F1	Test Driver

• *Jarno Trulli switched from Renault to Toyota during the 2004 season.

Team changes

Red Bull Racing, which took over the Jaguar team, ran with Cosworth engines. Red Bull's lead driver was veteran Scotsman David Coulthard, paired with Christian Klien, the '04 Jaguar driver. Red Bull performed well, scoring 11 points after the first two events. Toyota-powered Jordan Grand Prix was purchased by Midland Group, although the team continued as Jordan until 2006. Sauber switched from Bridgestone to Michelin tyres over the winter, further severing their ties with the Ferrari team.

Shortly after the United States Grand Prix, Peter Sauber sold BMW a majority share in his Sauber team, which announced its intention to run as BMW's factory team in 2006.

Formula One 2005 race schedule

Rd.	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne	6 March
2	Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Kuala Lumpur	20 March
3	Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	3 April
4	San Marino Grand Prix	Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola	24 April
5	Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona	8 May
6	Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte-Carlo	22 May
7	European Grand Prix	Nürburgring	29 May
8	Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal	12 June
9	United States Grand Prix	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	19 June
10	French Grand Prix	Circuit de Nevers, Magny-Cours	3 July
11	British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit	10 July
12	German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring	24 July
13	Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Budapest	31 July
14	Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park	21 August
15	Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale Monza	4 September
16	Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Spa	11 September
17	Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	25 September
18	Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka Circuit	9 October
19	Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit	16 October

Broadcasting changes

2005 is the beginning of a new 8-year TV deal with GlobalTV network in Indonesia. It was announced on January 21.

Results and standings

The 2005 Formula One calendar featured a new event in Turkey, just miles from the Europe-Asia dividing line. The newly-built circuit in Istanbul joined the 2004 newcomers Bahrain and China. The 2005 season witnessed two of the hottest grands prix ever: the track temperature at the beginning of the Malaysian event was 51°C (124°F), while in Bahrain the mercury soared past 56°C (133°F).

Grands Prix

Rd.	Grand Prix	Pole Position	Fastest Lap	Winning Driver	Constructor	Report
1	Australian Grand Prix	Giancarlo Fisichella	Fernando Alonso	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	Report
2	Malaysian Grand Prix	Fernando Alonso	Kimi Räikkönen	Fernando Alonso	Renault	Report
3	Bahrain Grand Prix	Fernando Alonso	Pedro de la Rosa	Fernando Alonso	Renault	Report
4	San Marino Grand Prix	Kimi Räikkönen	Michael Schumacher	Fernando Alonso	Renault	Report
5	Spanish Grand Prix	Kimi Räikkönen	Giancarlo Fisichella	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
6	Monaco Grand Prix	Kimi Räikkönen	Michael Schumacher	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
7	European Grand Prix	Nick Heidfeld	Fernando Alonso	Fernando Alonso	Renault	Report
8	Canadian Grand Prix	Jenson Button	Kimi Räikkönen	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
9	United States Grand Prix	Jarno Trulli	Michael Schumacher	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	Report
10	French Grand Prix	Fernando Alonso	Kimi Räikkönen	Fernando Alonso	Renault	Report
11	British Grand Prix	Fernando Alonso	Kimi Räikkönen	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
12	German Grand Prix	Kimi Räikkönen	Kimi Räikkönen	Fernando Alonso	Renault	Report
13	Hungarian Grand Prix	Michael Schumacher	Kimi Räikkönen	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
14	Turkish Grand Prix	Kimi Räikkönen	Juan Pablo Montoya	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
15	Italian Grand Prix	Juan Pablo Montoya	Kimi Räikkönen	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
16	Belgium Grand Prix	Juan Pablo Montoya	Ralf Schumacher	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
17	Brazilian Grand Prix	Fernando Alonso	Kimi Räikkönen	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
18	Japanese Grand Prix	Ralf Schumacher	Kimi Räikkönen	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
19	Chinese Grand Prix	Fernando Alonso	Kimi Räikkönen	Fernando Alonso	Renault	Report

Drivers

Points for the 2005 FIA Formula One World Championship for Drivers were awarded on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis to the top eight finishers at each round ^[3].

Pos [4] Driver AUS MAL BHR SMR ESP MON EUR CAN USA FRA GBR GER HUN TUR ITA BEL BRA JPN CHN Pts 1 Fernando Alonso 3 1 1 1 2 4 1 Ret DNS 1 2 1 11 2 2 2 3 3 1 133 2 Kimi Räikkönen 8 9 3 Ret 1 1 11 1 DNS 2 3 Ret 1 1 4 1 2 1 2 112 3 Michael Schumacher Ret 7 Ret 2 Ret 7 5 2 1 3 6 5 2 Ret 10 Ret 4 7 Ret 62 4 Juan Pablo Montoya 6 4 7 5 7 DSQ DNS Ret 1 2 Ret 3 1 14 1 Ret Ret 60 5 Giancarlo Fisichella 1 Ret Ret Ret 5 12 6 Ret DNS 6 4 4 9 4 3 Ret 5 2 4 58 6 Ralf Schumacher 12 5 4 9 4 6 Ret 6 7 8 6 3 12 6 7 8 8 3 45 7 Jarno Trulli 9 2 2 5 3 10 8 Ret DNS 5 9 14 4 6 5 Ret 13 Ret 15 43 8 Rubens Barrichello 2 Ret 9 Ret 9 8 3 3 2 9 7 10 10 10 12 5 6 11 12 38 9 Jenson Button 11 Ret Ret DSQ 10 Ret DNS 4 5 3 5 5 8 3 7 5 8 37 10 Mark Webber 5 Ret 6 7 6 3 Ret 5 DNS 12 11 NC 7 Ret 14 4 NC 4 7 36 11 Nick Heidfeld Ret 3 Ret 6 10 2 2 Ret DNS 14 12 11 6 Ret 28 12 David Coulthard 4 6 8 11 8 Ret 4 7 DNS 10 13 7 Ret 7 15 Ret Ret 6 9 24 13 Felipe Massa 10 10 7 10 11 9 14 4 DNS Ret 10 8 14 Ret 9 10 11 10 6 11 14 Jacques Villeneuve 13 Ret 11 4 Ret 11 13 9 DNS 8 14 15 Ret 11 11 6 12 12 10 9 15 Christian Klien 7 8 DNS 8 DNS Ret 15 9 Ret 8 13 9 9 9 5 9 16 Tiago Monteiro 16 12 10 13 12 13 15 10 3 13 17 17 13 15 17 8 Ret 13 11 7 17 Alexander Wurz 3 6 18 Narain Karthikeyan 15 11 Ret 12 13 Ret 16 Ret 4 15 Ret 16 12 14 20 11 15 15 Ret 5 19 Christijan Albers Ret 13 13 Ret Ret 14 17 11 5 Ret 18 13 NC Ret 19 12 14 16 16 4 20 Pedro de la Rosa 5 4 21 Patrick Friesacher 17 Ret 12 Ret Ret Ret 18 Ret 6 Ret 19 3 22 Antônio Pizzonia 7 15 Ret Ret 13 2 23 Takuma Sato 14 Ret DSQ 12 Ret DNS 11 16 12 8 9 16 Ret 10 DSQ Ret 1 24 Vitantonio Liuzzi 8 Ret Ret 9 1 25 Robert Doornbos 18 Ret 13 18 13 Ret 14 14 0 — Anthony Davidson Ret 0 — Ricardo Zonta DNS 0 Pos Driver AUS MAL BHR SMR ESP MON EUR CAN USA FRA GBR GER HUN TUR ITA BEL BRA JPN CHN Pts

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Friday test driver (TD) (from 2003 onwards) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Excluded (EX) Did not arrive (DNA) Withdrew entry before the event (WD)

Note that bold indicates pole position, and italics indicate fastest lap. Note: Drivers on Michelin tyres had to withdraw from the US grand prix before the race started.

Constructors

Points for the 2005 FIA Formula One World Championship for Constructors were awarded on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis to the first eight finishers in each round ^[3].

Pos Constructor Car no. AUS MAL BHR SMR ESP MON EUR CAN USA FRA GBR GER HUN TUR ITA BEL BRA JPN CHN Pts 1 Renault 5 3 1 1 1 2 4 1 Ret DNS 1 2 1 11 2 2 2 3 3 1 191 6 1 Ret Ret Ret 5 12 6 Ret DNS 6 4 4 9 4 3 Ret 5 2 4 2 McLaren Mercedes 9 8 9 3 Ret 1 1 11 1 DNS 2 3 Ret 1 1 4 1 2 1 2 182 10 6 4 5 3 7 5 7 DSQ DNS Ret 1 2 Ret 3 1 14 1 Ret Ret 3 Ferrari 1 Ret 7 Ret 2 Ret 7 5 2 1 3 6 5 2 Ret 10 Ret 4 7 Ret 100 2 2 Ret 9 Ret 9 8 3 3 2 9 7 10 10 10 12 5 6 11 12 4 Toyota 16 9 2 2 5 3 10 8 Ret DNS 5 9 14 4 6 5 Ret 13 Ret 15 88 17 12 5 4 9 4 6 Ret 6 DNS 7 8 6 3 12 6 7 8 8 3 5 Williams BMW 7 5 Ret 6 7 6 3 Ret 5 DNS 12 11 Ret 7 Ret 14 4 NC 4 7 66 8 Ret 3 Ret 6 10 2 2 Ret DNS 14 12 11 6 Ret 7 15 Ret Ret 13 6 BAR Honda 3 11 Ret Ret DSQ 10 Ret DNS 4 5 3 5 5 8 3 7 5 8 38 4 14 Ret Ret DSQ 12 Ret DNS 11 16 12 8 9 16 Ret 10 DSQ Ret 7 RBR Cosworth 14 4 6 8 11 8 Ret 4 7 DNS 10 13 7 Ret 7 15 Ret Ret 6 9 34 15 7 8 DNS 8 Ret Ret 9 8 DNS Ret 15 9 Ret 8 13 9 9 9 5 8 Sauber Petronas 11 13 Ret 11 4 Ret 11 13 9 DNS 8 14 15 Ret 11 11 6 12 12 10 20 12 10 10 7 10 11 9 14 4 DNS Ret 10 8 14 Ret 9 10 11 10 6 9 Jordan Toyota 18 16 12 10 13 12 13 15 10 3 13 17 17 13 15 17 8 Ret 13 11 12 19 15 11 Ret 12 13 Ret 16 Ret 4 15 Ret 16 12 14 20 11 15 15 Ret 10 Minardi Cosworth 20 17 Ret 12 Ret Ret Ret 18 Ret 6 Ret 19 18 Ret 13 18 13 Ret 14 14 7 21 Ret 13 13 Ret Ret 14 17 11 5 Ret 18 13 NC Ret 19 12 14 16 16 Pos Constructor Car no. AUS MAL BHR SMR ESP MON EUR CAN USA FRA GBR GER HUN TUR ITA BEL BRA JPN CHN Pts

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Friday test driver (TD) (from 2003 onwards) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Excluded (EX) Did not arrive (DNA) Withdrew entry before the event (WD)

Rules changes

For a time there existed a distinct possibility that some teams would be running three race cars per grand prix. (Fewer than 10 teams, or 20 cars, starting on the grid would have resulted in some teams running three cars, under an obscure term in the Concorde Agreement.) By the first round of the season, though, there were ten teams, as Red Bull completed their takeover of Jaguar and were ready to race in Australia. Minardi, which initially received an injunction allowing them to compete despite their cars' non-conformity to new 2005 technical regulations, later modified their cars to adhere to 2005 regulations.

Qualifying

The first six races of the 2005 season used a new qualifying format, marking the third year in five with sharply-revised qualifying rules. Grid position was determined by aggregate times from two single-lap flying runs, one Saturday afternoon and one Sunday morning. Refueling was allowed after the first qualifying run Saturday; however, the car must have been fuelled for the race for Sunday's qualifying. (Although some rules changes are brought about to even the playing field or to reduce costs, this rule change was prompted by the typhoon which rescheduled qualifying for the 2004 Japanese Grand Prix). Adverse weather conditions affecting either qualifying session impacted the final, aggregate time.

On May 24, the ten team bosses met with Max Mosley and recommended a return to a single, one-lap qualifying run on Saturday on race fuel and race tires, which, having been approved by the FIA World Motorsport Council, took effect at the European Grand Prix on May 29.

Tyres

A hugely significant change in 2005 was the absence of tyre changes during pit stops. Under new regulations, a driver had to use one set of tyres during qualifying and the race itself. Tyre changes were allowed for punctures and for wet weather, under the direction of the FIA. The FIA had to post a "change in climatic conditions" notice in order for tyre changes to occur normally. After Kimi Räikkönen's disastrous accident at the Nurburgring when his suspension collapsed after a flat-spotted tyre ripped the carbon fiber suspension apart, team principals and the FIA agreed that a single tyre change per car could be made without penalty, provided it was to change a tyre that had become dangerously worn like Räikkönen's had. Obviously, preserving a single set of tyres for the entire race became a new challenge for drivers; the challenge for tyre manufactures was to produce more durable, long-lasting compounds. Michelin-shod runners had a distinct advantage over their Bridgestone counterparts.

However, during practice for the US Grand Prix it became apparent that Michelin's tyres were not capable of handling the loads put on them through Indianapolis' banked turn 13. Controversy ensued, with the end result being the seven Michelin-shod teams withdrawing from the race after the parade lap. Michelin stated that the tyres were not safe to use for more than ten laps, but even without the no-change rule the number of tyre changes required to go the distance would have left these teams far behind the Bridgestone runners.

Engine life

Formula One engines had to last two race weekends, double that demanded by 2004 regulations. A driver who needed to change an engine was subject to a 10 place grid penalty for the race. Designed to limit revs and power outputs demanded by greater reliability, this regulation was also a cost-cutting measure for engine manufacturers. After the initial race of the season, the FIA acted to close a loophole in this new regulation exposed by BAR, who deliberately pitted their cars rather than finish the race.

Aerodynamics

The technical aerodynamics regulations were modified to improve competition, especially for cars traveling in another car's aeroflow wake in order to overtake. By changing the size and placement of both front and rear wings, as well as requiring higher noses, the new rules attempted to reduce downforce by roughly one-quarter, but teams developed other chassis innovations to reclaim much of that "lost" downforce, which made following another car even harder than the previous season.

Delayed starts and race stoppages

If driver stalled his car while entering the final grid, the other cars were sent instantly to new warm-up lap, instead of all drivers stopping their cars and waiting couple of minutes for new start. Stalled car is pushed to the pit lane and the grid is clear when the drivers return.

When the race is red-flagged, the timekeeping system will not stop. The drivers stop on the start/finish straight. The restart is done behind the safety car instead of standing start which was used earlier. Although this rule came in effect in 2005, it was first used at the 2007 European Grand Prix.

Also in safety car situations, the rules were changed to allow the safety car to use the pit lane if necessary. This rule change was made following Ralf Schumacher's accident in 2004 United States Grand Prix. As of the 2010 Australian Grand Prix, this contingency has yet to be required.

References

External links

• 2005 Formula One season images Retrieved from www.motorsport.com on 5 December 2008